Sheet retarding and piling mechanism



Nov. 19, 1929. A. BROADMEYER 1,736,482

sumaw RETARDING AND FILING MECHANISM File Aug. 1927 5 sneaks-sheet 1 J2me? Eroadmqyer; 7 lg/71 ATTORNEY.

Nov. 19, 1929. A. BRQADMEYER i{736,482

v SHEET RETARDING AND FILING MECHANISM Filed A g 1927 :5 Sheets-Sheet 2 IN VEN TOR.

A TTORNEY.

Nov. 19, 1929. A. BROADMEYER I 1,736,482

SHEET RETARDING AND FILING MECHANISM Filed 1927 s Sheets-Sheet 3 [NV EN TOR.

LU Jllber i Brmm'meyer,

ATTORNEY.

Patented Nov. 19, 1929 UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE ALBERT BROADMEYEB, OF HARRISBURG, PENNSYLVANIA, ASSIGNOB TO THE W. O.

HICKOK MANUFACTURING COMPANY, OF HARRISBURG, PENNSYLVANIA, A COB- PORATION OF PENNSYLVANIA SHEET RETARDING ANP PILING MECHANISM Application filed August 8, 1927. Serial No. 210,877.

With modern apparatus that rule or otherwise work upon paper sheets, a high degree of speed is obtainable, but this has resulted in difiiculties at the receiving end of the apparatus. When sheets traveling at a high speed are brought to a sudden standstill by abutting against a stop, their edges are apt to be curled, or they rebound, and the consequence is that they -do not pile properly and accurately.

One of the objects of the present invention is to provide means for automatically cutting down the speed of the sheets as they are delivered to a receiver, said means being simple and of proven effectiveness. A further object is to have this retarding means under the automatic control of the sheets themselves.

A still further object is to provide means for pressing down and further retarding the sheets as they are piled, thus insuring a more even surface and more accurate relation of the sheets. I

The preferred embodiment of the invention is illustrated in the accompanying drawings, wherein Figure 1 is a side elevation of a machine equipped with the novel mechanism,

Figure 2 is a top plan view thereof,

Figure 3 is a longitudinal sectional view,

Figure 4 is a detail view in elevation of the pneumatic motor.

Figure 5 is a perspective view of the relief shoe.

Figure 6 is a vertical sectional view through said shoe,

Figure 7 is a detail sectional view on the line 7-7 of Figure 4,

Figure 8 is a longitudinal sectional viewon an enlarged scale of the controlling valve for the air blasts.

In the embodiment disclosed, a suitable supporting frame 9 is employed, having a sheet-receiver designated generally by the reference numeral 10. This may be of any well-known character. In the embodiment disclosed it is in the form of a lay-b0 having a table 11, a rear stop wall 12 and side walls 13. The form of receiver is, however, not particularly important. A conveyor, consisting of upper and lower tapes 14, delivers the sheets in a well-known manner, and as mdicated in Figure 3, to the receiver. As is well known under modern conditions, the conveyor is operated at a relatively high speed, and as above stated, when the sheets enter the receiver and strike the stop wall 12, they are apt to rebound therefrom or be crumpled. This is particularly true where light stock is being operated on.

In the present mechanism, a retarding roller 15 is interposed between the'delivery end of the conveyor 14 and the admitting end of the receiver 10. This roller is rotated at a lower rate of speed than the conveyor through the medium of properly proportioned gearing 16 that connects the lower. shaft 17 of the conveyor 14 and said roller 15. As illustrated in Figure 3 the sheets successively carried by the conveyor 14 pass over the roller 15 as they enter the lay-boy 10. A rock shaft '18 is supported above and in rear of the roller 15 and is provided with one or more crank arms 19 carrying rollers 20 that are adapted to swing downwardly into coaction with the retarding roller 15 or upwardly out of coaction therewith. An

arm 21, carried by said rock shaft 18, has

connected to it a spring 22 for urging the arms 19 and rollers 20 downwardly. This rock shaft 18 also has a rearwardl extending arm 23 to which is connected a lin 245 having a connection with a piston rod 25. The piston rod is carried by a piston 26 o erating in a cylinder 27, said cylinder an 7 piston constituting a pneumatic motor.

A rotary air pump 28 is suitably mounted within the frame 9, and its intake side is in that is in turn adj ustaly mounted on a sup- I porting arm 34 by means of a clamping screw 35 passing through a slot 36 in said arm 34. The arm 34 in turn is carried by a yoke 37 vided at the lower end of the cylinder, means for varying the amount of vacuum produced in the cylinder 27 by the air pump 28. This is preferably in the form of relief vents controlled by a rotatable valve 39.

Mounted on the side bars of the frame 9 are standards 40 connected at their upper ends by supporting tubes 41. These tubes are connected by transverse air pipes 42 having outlet ports 43 in their undersides, which constitute nozzles or means for projecting downwardblasts of air on to the table 11. A valve casing 44 suitably mounted on the frame 9 is provided with divergent outlet nipples 45 to which are connected branch conduits 46 that in turn are connected by the pipes 42. A depending supply nipple 47 is located directly below the nipples 45 and this nipple is connected by a conduit 48 with the discharge nozzle 49 of the air pump 28.

As shown in Figure 8 the valve casing contains a reciprocatory plunger valve 50 having a terminal head 51 and an annular groove 52, either of which can be interposed between the nipples 45 and the nipple 47, according to the position of the Valve 50. This valve 50 has a link connection 53 with a depending arm 54 fixed to the rock shaft 18.. I

The operation of the mechanism is as follows. When there is no sheet over the shoe 31, air can flow freely into the ports 32 and supply the pump 28. Consequently the spring 22 will act to hold the rollers 20 in their lower positionor in operative relation to the retarding roller 15. When in this position the valve 50 is so located that the nipple 47 is in communication with the nipples 45 through the port 52, and the air thus drawn through the conduit 2930, is delivered through pipes 42 and downwardly through the nozzles 43, upon the table. When a sheet is brought by the conveyor 14 over the shoe 31, the ports 32 are closed. As a consequence a partial vacuum will be created in the lower end of the cylinder 27 and the piston 26 will be forced down by the air above it. This raises the rollers 20 and permits the sheet to pass on to the retarding roller 15. At the same time the blasts through the nozzles 43 will be cut off or so materially reduced that they are relatively ineffective. As soon as the rear end of the sheet has passed the shoe 31 thevacuum in the cylinder 27 will be relieved and the spring 22 willjreact to swing the rollers 20 down against the sheet that is now passing over the retarding roller 15. A gripping action will thus be secured upon the-sheet against the roller 15 and as the roller 15 is running at a relatively'low rate of speed, the

meaeea speed of the sheet will be reduced, so that it will run against the sto 12 at a relatively low rate of speed. By t' is time also the air is again admitted to the pipes 42 and the downward blasts will not only further retard the sheets, but will also ress them downward and cause them to lie at on the pile. This operation obviously takes place with each successive sheet.

From the foregoing, it is thought that the construction, operation and many advantages of the herein described invention will be apparent to those skilled in the art, without further description, and it will be understood that various changes in the size, shape, proportion and minor details of construction may be resorted to without departing from the spirit or sacrificing any of the advantages of the invention.

. What I claim, is:

1. In apparatus of the character set forth, the combination with a receiver for sheets, of means for delivering sheets successively to the receiver, and means controlled b the sheets for retarding their speed of delivery to the receiver.

2. In apparatus of the character set forth, the combination with a receiver for sheets, of means for delivering sheets successively to the receiver, and pneumatically operated means controlled by the sheets for retarding their speed of delivery to the receiver.

3. In apparatus of the character set forth, the combination with a receiver for sheets, of means for delivering sheets successively to the receiver, a retarding device interposed between the delivery means and the receiver, and pneumatically operated means for causing the sheets to have a gripping contact with the retarding device.

4. In apparatus of the character set forth,

the combination with a receiver 'for sheets, of means for delivering sheets successively to the receiver, a retarding device interposed between the delivery means and the receiver, pneumatically operated means for causing the sheets to have a gripping contact with the retarding device, and means controlled by the sheets for eflecting the operation of the pneumatic means.

5. In apparatus of the character set forth, the combination with a receiver for sheets, of means for delivering sheets successively to the receiver, a retarding device interposed between the delivery means and the receiver, means for moving the retarding device at a lower rate of speed than the delivery means, a gripping device movable into and out of coaction with the retarding device, and means controlled by the sheets to cause the gripping device to move into coaction with the retarding device when a sheet is on the latter.

6. In apparatus of the character set forth, the combination with a receiver for sheets, of means for delivering sheets successively to the receiver, a retarding roller interposed between the delivery means and the receiver and operated at a lower rate of speed than the delivery means, a swinging device that moves into and out of coaction with the rolle1,-a pneumatic motor for swinging the device, and a relief vent device for the motor having a relief port traversed by the sheets.

7. In apparatus of the character set forth, the combination with a sheet receiver, of means for delivering sheets thereto, an air blast nozzle overlying the receiver, a conduit for supplying air to the nozzle, a valve in the conduit, and means controlled by the sheets for operating the valve.

8. In apparatus of the character set forth, the combination with a sheet. receiver, of means for delivering sheets thereto, an air blast nozzle overlying the receiver, a con-' duit for supplying air to the nozzle, a valve in the conduit, and a pneumatic motor for operating the valve and having a relief vent traversed by the sheets.

9. In apparatus of the character set forth, the combination with a sheet receiving table, and a conveyor for successively delivering sheets thereto, of a plurality of downwardly directing blast nozzles supported over the table, an airsupply conduit connected to the nozzles, a controlling valve in the conduit, a pneumatic motor for operating the valve, and relief mechanism for the motor including a shoe traversed by the sheets and having a relief port covered and uncovered by the sheets. I

10. In apparatus of the character set forth,

the combination with a sheet receiver, of

means for delivering sheets thereto, a sheet retarder that slows down the sheets delivered to the receiver, sheet pressing means acting on the sheets delivered to the receiver, and

- common means for controlling the operation of the retarder and pressing means.

11. In apparatus of the character set forth, the combination with a sheet receiver, of means for delivering sheets thereto, a sheet retarder that slows down the sheets delivered to the receiver, sheet pressing means acting on the sheets delivered to the receiver, a controlling device for the sheet pressing means, i

and a motor connected to the sheet pressing means and to the controlling device for operating both.

12. In apparatus of the character set forth, the combination with a sheet receiver, of means for delivering sheets thereto, a sheet retarder that slows down the sheets delivered to the receiver, sheet pressing means acting ersed by the sheets and having a relief port covered and uncovered by said sheets.

13. In apparatus of the character set forth, the combination with a sheet supporting table, of downwardly projecting blast nozzles located thereover, an air supply conduit connected to the nozzles, a controlling valve on the conduit, a conveyor for delivering sheets to the table, a sheet retarding roller interposed between the conveyor and table, a swinging support having a gripping roller movable into and out of co-action with the retarding roller, a pneumatic motor connected to the swinging support-and to the controlling valve, a pump having'its intake connected to the pneumatic motor and its outlet connected to the air conduit, and a relief conduit for the pneumatic motor including a shoe traversed by the sheets and having a vent port covered and uncovered by said sheets.

14. In apparatus of the character set forth, the combination with a receiver for a pile of sheets, of means for delivering sheets successively to the receiver, relatively movable coacting devices interposed between the delivering means and receiver for gripping the sheets to retard their progress into the receiver, means controlled by an approaching sheet for causing the separation of the devices to permit the entrance of asheet between them and thereafter allowing the devices to close upon and retard the sheet that has controlled the operation of the devices.

15. In apparatus of the character set forth, the combination with a receiver for a pile of sheets, of means for delivering sheets successively to the receiver, relatively movable coact-ing devices interposed between the delivering means and receiver for gripping the sheets to retard their progress into the receiver, means controlled by an approaching sheet for causing the separation of the devices to permit the entrance of a-sheet between them and thereafter allowing the devices to close upon and retard the sheet that has controlled the operation of the devices, said means including a controller in advance of the devices and traversed by the sheet.

In testimony whereof, I affix my signature.

- ALBERT BROADMEYER. 

